Al Pacino to portray role of Penn State football coach accused of sexual abuse

Los Angeles: Oscar-winning actor Al Pacino is set to star as former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in a new HBO movie about Jerry Sandusky sex scandal.

The summary for the film reads: “After becoming the winningest coach in college football history, Joe Paterno is embroiled in Penn State’s Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse scandal, challenging his legacy and forcing him to face questions of institutional failure on behalf of the victims”, reported Variety.

Barry Levinson will direct, while Debora Cahn, John C Richards and David McKenna will write the screenplay for the untitled film.

Paterno, often referred to as JoePa, is widely regarded as one of the best college football coaches of all time.

However, his career came to a sudden halt in 2011 when his assistant coach Sandusky’s crimes came to light, with a 2012 report concluding that Paterno and other Penn State officials were aware of Sandusky’s actions but chose to stay mum.

Sandusky served as an assistant coach for his entire career, mostly at Pennsylvania State University under Paterno, from 1969 to 1999. In 2011, he was arrested and charged with 52 counts of sexual abuse.

Al Pacino will also be starring in Martin Scorsese’s next film titled The Irishman alongside Robert De Niro. It will be the first time Al Pacino will team up with Scorsese; while it will be De Niro’s tenth film with the filmmaker. The film is scheduled to go on floors early 2018.

(With inputs from PTI)